NEWARK -- A 50-year-old woman who was shot in the head last week on a street here remained in very critical condition today, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office said, as police continued to search for the shooter.

Rita Young-Flythe was shot once in the face Wednesday night near the intersection of South Orange and Fairmount avenues in the city’s West Ward, police said.

There have been no arrests yet, and police have not explained what were the circumstances surrounding the shooting, or whether Young-Flythe was struck by a stray bullet or was the intended target.

At a Friday night vigil, friends and relatives said Young-Flythe was comatose and on life support. The mother and grandmother, who lives in Irvington, had for 18 years worked in the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in East Orange.